This meme used to be sponsored by Becky at Page Turners, but she relinquished the meme to someone else. I like the idea of still doing this every Friday, so here's the opening to "A Journey of the Centre of the Earth," by Jules Verne."Looking back to all that has occurred to me since that eventful day, I am scarcely able to believe in the reality of my adventures."
Love it. It's using foreshadowing to get the reader excited to hear about the 'eventful day.' Based on this, it could be anything... but it's an adventure that is so good we may doubt the reality of it. Awesome. I never read any Jules Verne as a kid, so I'm excited to give this one a go.
What do you think about the opening sentence?
(Parenthetically, I really like this portrait and I can't figure out if it's due to the eyes, all the facial hair, or the beautiful shading. Or maybe I just have some sort of man crush on Jules Verne?)
10 comments:
That's a great opening sentence that would get me to read further.
I love when books start out with a tidy comment that takes in account all that the reader is about to experience. It gets me interested for sure :)
Hello! I've discovered you via the blog hop (and am following now :-)
Quite impressed with the caliber of your blog and the scope of your reading.
Hope you'll visit (and follow?) back. I plan on stopping by your blog regularly.
Becky (The Book Frog)
I love it. I am so glad that you have reminded me to read this book. I love the old movie so much, couldn't stop watching it as a child.
That is indeed a great beginning. I read this book for the first time a few years ago - after growing up watching the classics 50's (?) movie adaptation with James Mason (and Pat Boone!) virtually every time it was shown on TV.
I remember noting how different the original novel was from the movie version, with which I had become so familiar. I liked it anyway, and I particularly remember the one scene in the book where our adventurer catches a glimpse of a human form for just a moment. I wish I had a copy of the book in front of me right now. I would go back and find that memorable passage...
That is one of the best classic openings ever! (and there's nothing wrong with a man crush, but it definitely COULD be the great shading as well!)
Julie @ Knitting and Sundries
hi just hopping over from the book blogger hop
(here through the blog hop)
I do like that opening. I loved Twenty Thousand Leagues Under the Sea, and hated The Mysterious Island so much I didn't finish it.
A few years prior to starting my book blog, I was on a kick of late 1800's-early 1900's adventure tales (Read a lot of Stephenson, Kipling, Doyle, Haggard, etc.) and read 20,000 Leagues, but not Journey to the Center of the Earth. It may have to go back on my TBR pile.
Eep. I did not enjoy this book at all. =/
I am on an early science fiction kick at the moment. I just finished reading The Day of the Triffids by John Wyndham which I totally loved and I can't wait to read this.
I watched the old movie of it as a child and I loved it!
I bet the book is just as good.
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